Report: Obama Granted Amnesty to Soleimani in Iran Deal

Assuredly, thus said Hashem, the God of Yisrael, concerning the shepherds who should tend My people: It is you who let My flock scatter and go astray. You gave no thought to them, but I am going to give thought to you, for your wicked acts—declares Hashem.” Jeremiah 23:2 (The Israel Bible™)

President Barack Obama with the US flag in the background as he delivers a speech at a campaign rally for the presumptive democratic nominee in Charlotte, July 5, 2016. (Photo: Evan El-Amin / Shutterstock.com)

“For a decade a more he has been the driving force behind an array of Iranian-sponsored terrorist groups, from Hizbollah to Hamas, which have orchestrated a reign of terror throughout the Middle East,” Coughlin wrote. “Thanks to Mr. Obama’s scandalous capitulation to Tehran, Mr. Suleimani has overnight gone from being one of the world’s most wanted terrorists to the White House’s newest best friend.”

This amnesty clause in the JCPOA removed Soleimani from the Treasury Department’s designated terrorist list he had been on since 2007. Before the JCPOA, Soleimani was targeted with sanctions in the United Nations Security Council, by the U.S., the European Union, and the Swiss government.

A number of other senior members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) were included in this blanket amnesty as well. The appendix in the JCPOA covered entities, individuals as well as corporations, that would be affected by the removal of economic sanctions as per the agreement.

Coughlin also lamented the dismal provisions in the JCPOA for inspections verifying Iran’s compliance with the deal.

President Trump’s claim that Soleimani was responsible for “thousands of American casualties” may have been hyperbole and, in truth. It is impossible to put a precise number on how many American military personnel was killed on Soleimani’s orders but last year, the State Department revealed that the IRGC was responsible for the deaths of more than 600 American service members during the war in Iraq, higher than the previous estimate of 500.

The IRGC, along with its specialized Quds Force, supports terrorists around the world, carried out and assassinations, funded illicit missile development and wields huge influence both inside the country and around the region. Under Soleimani, the IRGC supported and trained Iran’s global proxies, including Hezbollah in Lebanon, Shiite militias in Iraq, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza, and the Houthis in Yemen. The IRGC supported the regime of President Bashar Assad in Syria who has murdered tens of thousands of his own citizens.

“If I were Suleimani, I’d be organizing an enormous party right now to celebrate a deal that is truly a ‘historic victory’ for Tehran,” Coughlin wrote at the signing of the JCPOA. Though Soleimani is not celebrating and did get his (belated) just deserts, it might be interesting to review the list in the JCPOA appendix to see if it bears more revision.

About the Author

Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz is a features writer for Breaking Israel News. He made Aliyah to Israel in 1991 and served in the IDF as a combat medic. Berkowitz studied Jewish law and received rabbinical ordination in Israel. He has worked as a freelance writer and two works of fiction, The Hope Merchant and Dolphins on the Moon, are available on Amazon. He lives in the Golan Heights with his wife and their four children.